Show ContentsWakmind History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Wakmind family

The surname Wakmind was first found in Devon where they were mentioned as men of great influence in the Church and public affairs. Traditionally, the Wakeman, in the ancient Saxon village before the Norman Conquest in 1066, was a man who sounded the horn during the evening to mark the time when criminal offences took on a greater penalty.

The Wakeman of Ripon, Yorkshire has blown his horn faithfully every day at 9:00pm at the four corners of the obelisk in Ripon Market since 886. This "Setting the Watch" tradition is further shown by having the horn on the Arms of Ripon and again appearing on the Harrogate borough coat of arms.

Early History of the Wakmind family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wakmind research. Another 71 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1539, 1541, 1549, 1592, 1659, 1662, 1679 and 1688 are included under the topic Early Wakmind History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wakmind Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Wakmind were recorded, including Wakeman, Wakman, Wakeham, Waikham and others.

Early Notables of the Wakmind family

Notables of this surname at this time include: John Wakeman (died 1549) an English Benedictine, the last Abbot of Tewkesbury and first Bishop of Gloucester; Sir George Wakeman (died 1688), English royal physician to Catherine of Braganza, Consort of Charles II of England; and John Wakeman, Bishop of Gloucester. He was the son of Edward Wakeman (1592-1659) of the Inner Temple. "George Wakeman, who was a zealous Roman Catholic, was educated...
Another 71 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Wakmind Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Wakmind family

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Wakmind family emigrate to North America: John Wakeham settled in Salvage, Newfoundland in 1681; three brothers Wakeham, Jim, John and Ben settled in St John's, Newfoundland; Samuel and Elizabeth Wakeman settled in Nantasket, Massachusetts in 1631.



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